Feed-water-heating apparatus.



E. PELTON & S. D. HOPTON.

FEED WATER HEATING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 27, 1912.

1 ,238, 1 87. Patented Aug. 28, 1917.

v lNv ENI'ORS EFheSl. P liom Sunk ItHopLon.

FEED-WATER-HEATING APPARATUS.

Application filed March 27, 1912.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we. ERNEST PnL'roN and STaxLnY D. Horton, citizens of the United States, residing at Geneva, in the county of Ashtabula and State of Ohio, have invented. certain new and useful Improvements in Feed-lVater-I-leating Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to feed water heating and oil and vapor separating devices for steam boilers, and the object of the invention is to heat the supply water furnished to the main feed pump of the feed water system without causing the pump to be air or vapor bound. The invention further embodies a duplex heating appliance comprising a main water heater and an auxiliary water heater adapted together to heat the feed water to the boiling point before discharge thereof to the boiler, thereby securing economy and greater efficiency in operations, all substantially as shown and described and particularly pointed out in the claims. The specific auxiliary water heater herein referred to is shown and described in our divisional application, patented April 7, 1914, No. 1,092,592.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a cross section of a vessel showing diagrammatically all the more essential and coacting elements of the complete installation from the boiler to the engine and to the main feed water heater and the return to the boiler. It further shows diagrammatically the auxiliary heater, and the parts directly or indirectly associated therewith, in position in the complete installation.

Fig. 2 is an elevation mostly in section of the auxiliary or supplemental heater and its immediate connections.

Having reference now particularly to Fig. 1, which is a diagrammatical disclosure of the essential elements of the system. The boiler is represented by B, and the engine, which may be of any desired type, by E. The steam is led to the engine from the boiler by a connection represented by '2. The engine is provided with an exhaust pipe, as shown by 3, which discharges the exhaust steam into a condenser which is conventionally shown by c. A pump 7) is connected to the condenser by a pipe 4 by means of which the water formed from the condensed steam is led from the condenser to -e pump. pump is commonly re ferred as the air paint} and the water Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented A11 28, 1917.

Serial No. 686,534.

is delivered by this pump into a stand pipe 5 which has"a discharge port in the side of the vessel through which the surplus water may overflow. The air and vapors which might otherwise make the feed water system air or vapor bound, are also conveyed away by the foregoing means, and it will be understood that the main discharge is through the stand pipe 5, which yields a head of water from which the feed water for the boiler is constantly supplied.

The auxiliary feed water heater and separator is shown at h and is connected to the stand pipe 5 by the pipe line or connections 6 and 7. Thus, from the head of water maintained in the stand pipe 5 a supply of water is drawn through the auxiliary heater it by the main feed pump shown at 14, which is connected to said auxiliary heater by means of the pipe 10.

The said heater has a cylindrical body, as here shown, having a fluid inlet pipeconnection 7 with an elbow 7 at the bottom of the heater and into the outer end of which the water from the stand pipe 5 is discharged by pipe 6 about an exhaust-steam jet 8 projected endwise into the said pipe connection 7 and having a valve 9 to govern the flow of the steam therein.

Heretofore and so far as we are aware it has not been found practicable to heat the water to high temperatures on the supply side of the main feed pump and obtain a sustained solid stream of water without seriously affecting the operation of the pump, but with a heater and separator of the kind herein set forth, the water can be successfully heated to a very high temperature as it comes from the head of water in the stand pipe and is delivered to the main feed pump 14: by gravity under the head of water in stand-pipe 5. Thus it occurs that when the water is discharged by the pump to the main water heater 71- and there further heated that a gain of at least thirtyfive degrees higher temperature is obtained for the water discharged into the boiler, comparing results by use of the main heater alone as is the present practice. Briefly, with our invention the discharged water is heated to approximately the boiling point, thereby working great economy in fuel consumption at the boilers.

Specifically, the auxiliary heater h is provided with an outlet pipe 1O which extends threugh top or upper end down toabeut the middle thereof beneath the zone where air or uncondensed vapor would naturally accummulate if any were to come forward to this point, as occurs by introduction of steam by jet 8, although it is planned to minimize any considerable accumulationsof this kind in the heater. A shield 12 of cup shape is supported by a pipe 13 over the mouth of the said pipe 10 and in which the said pipe is immersed. 'Ihis forms something of a trap for sediment, but its main function is to guard against escape of air and vapors through pipe 10, or in other words the water at the intake end of suction pipe 10 will be guarded and kept free from disturbance by this shield from the action of the steam jet 8 on the water, particularly as vent and relief for the air and vapors is afforded at the top of this heater as hereinafter described.

The main feed pump 14 receives its supply of water through the pipe 10 and thence discharges the water by force to main heater h and by pipe 16 back into the boiler, and in the course of operations more or less grease or oil will accumulate which should be eliminated before returning the water of condensation to the boiler. The present plans provide for an air and vapor exit or relief by a pipe 17 tapped into the top of the auxiliary heater h and having one or more branches or elbows 18 connecting with pipe 17. The said pipe 17 extends to a considerable level above the main heater as shown or above the normal head of water in the stand pipe and may be provided with a valve at some point in the line thereof if desired, but no valve is shown as it is designed to keep the pipe 17 open. However, said pipe has an overflow pipe 20 connected therewith slightly below the normal head of water to draw off the oil or other accumulations which rise to the top of the heater and enter pipe 17.

Other features are a valved clean-out pipe 21 at the side and top of heater 7?. and a sediment clean-out from shield or cup 12 through pipe 13 and the bottom of elbow connection 7 Respecting the conical shield for the suction pipe, the same must necessarily be cleaned out occasionally or it will become filled with sediment which will be carried forward to the boiler. The location of the said shield at about the middle of the heater also helps materially to prevent sedimentary deposits in the shield from the body of water, and the said sediment gathering in the bottom can be drawn off through either of the valves 24: or 25, While valve 26 serves the pipe 13. Therefore, this device may also be regarded as a Water purifier.

Numerous details are shown here and there, particularly in Fig. 1, but those not described are not considered to be material to the present invention.

What we claim is:

1. In an installation as described, a steam engine having an exhaust pipe, a condenser open to said exhaust pipe, a stand pipe constituting a. discharge connection for the condenser, feed water connections open to said discharge connection and a feed-water heater therein below the normal head of water in the stand pipe, said heater having a steam jet arranged to discharge into the water and provided with separate vapor and water outlet connections.

2. In an installation as described, a steam engine, a condenser, a stand pipe, a main heater, an auxiliary heater, connecting pipes for said parts, steam connections for each heater, a pump to force the water from the auxiliary heater through the main heater, the said auxiliary heater having an open outlet at its top to permit the escape of air and vapor when the water therein is heated to high temperature.

3. In an installation as described, a steam engine, a condenser, said engine having exhaust pipe connections for the condenser, discharge pipe connections for the condenser, a main heater and auxiliary heater and a pump in said discharge pipe connections, and an air and vapor relief connection for the auxiliary heater extending above the normal head of Water in the discharge pipe connections.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

ERNEST PELTON. STANLEY D. HOPTON.

Witnesses:

R. B. MosER, F. C. MUSSUM.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

